Rock Radio - By Lisa Wainland Page 0,79

Dana was sure of herself and the decisions she was making with Cody. Part of her still nagged...you felt excitement over Sam, too. But it wasn’t like this, she argued the devil in her mind.

She remembered very clearly, it was never like this.

She got dressed quickly...anxious to be with Cody. They had such limited time together, she didn’t want to waste a second.

Dana opened the bedroom door and walked out onto the balcony. Cody silently gasped. She looked amazing in white Capri pants and a short white top that seemed to rise and fall with her breath revealing her tanned flat stomach. A thin silver chain belt hugged her hips. Her black hair was tied back loosely, soft wisps fell softly around her face.

“Hola.”

“Hola.”

“I missed you.”

“Me too.”

“Shall we go?” Cody ran his hand down her arm, taking her hand in his. He wore dark tan khaki pants and an azure collared shirt. Tan and muscular with his angular face, Cody looked more like a model than a rock star.

They strolled down to The Mexican Cantina and went inside. The restaurant transported them south of the border without the flight. The ceiling was painted the color of sunset. Small paper lanterns were strung across the realistic “sky.” Cream stucco walls were accented with adobe red tiles and carefully placed sombreros. In the corner of the restaurant a Mariachi band played lively Mexican songs. Dana and Cody had stepped into a fiesta.

They were seated next to a three-tiered fountain in the center of the restaurant. On the table was a bottle of Corona filled with salt, a clever idea for a condiment shaker.

“Cute,” Dana said picking it up.

“Thanks.” Cody looked up, “Oh, you mean the salt shaker.”

Dana laughed. “You look cute, too.” Damn good is more like it.

Within seconds a waitress appeared with a basket of hot, salty tortilla chips.

“Bienvenidos a la Cantina de Mexico. My name is Rosa.” She wore an embroidered blue off the shoulder dress. Her dark hair was gathered in a loose bun with a large red flower tucked into it. “Can I get you something to drink?”

Dana, taking in her surroundings, ordered. “I’ll have a margarita.”

“And for you, señor?” Rosa addressed Cody.

“Just some water for now.”

“I’ll be back to take your order.” Rosa left to get Dana’s drink.

“Hey, if I knew you weren’t drinking I wouldn’t have gotten anything.”

“No, that’s fine, maybe I’ll take a taste.”

“You’re not a big drinker are you? I’m not either...I just want you to know. It’s just that I’m on vacation and I don’t know...the place put me in the mood.”

Cody debated whether or not to tell Dana the truth of why he didn’t drink. He didn’t want her to feel bad about doing something she enjoyed just because of his past. He decided quickly. If this relationship was going to really be something the truth was the only place for it to start, but maybe, a cleaned up truth. He didn’t want to scare her off.

“Let me tell you why I don’t like to drink,” he paused. “My father was an alcoholic.”

Dana’s eyes grew wide.

Cody continued. “Not just an alcoholic, but an angry drunk. He was in his own miserable world most the time.”

Dana reached out and took his hands in hers. “How awful.”

Her sympathy was comforting. “It was. Since then I’ve never had a real taste for alcohol. I don’t know if it’s because I’m afraid I’d turn into my dad – though I know I’d never let that happen, or if it’s just that the desire to drink, socially I mean, was killed by seeing what it did to him.” Cody purposely left out his one drunken experience that found him in bed with a one night stand...the one night stand that ended his relationship with Laura.

“Drinking’s not that important to me, I don’t have to have a drink.” Dana raised her hand to motion to the waitress to cancel her order. The last thing she wanted to do was make Cody feel bad.

He brought her hand down back to the table. “No, no, no...my issues shouldn’t keep you from what you enjoy. I’m not an alcoholic...I sometimes have a drink, but my decision shouldn’t affect you.”

“I understand, but I don’t want to do anything to make you feel uncomfortable.”

“You won’t.”

Her eyes softened. “I’m so sorry for your childhood. It must have been so hard for you.”

“It was.”

“Do you still see your dad?”

“No.” Cody paused and took a deep breath. “I kicked him out when I was fifteen. It